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PFD for each person. Inflatabe PFD must be worn to count, throwable. One B-1 fire extinguisher. Working navigation lights. Horn/whistle. Three flares. While not required you would be wise to have a 25w VHF (remember you can't hail other boats with a cell phone). An anchor and 150 feet of line while not required would be helpful, especially if your engine fails in rough weather and you need to keep the into the wind until help arrives

Sounds like you should take a boating safety course offered by the USCG Auxiliary Some states, for example, NJ and VA, now require proof of completion of such a course

one or the other on the whislte/horn. Whats not on your list and is required is a throwable flotation device attached to rope or lanyard and it must be topside and visible according to the coastie that pulled me over in the NY Harbor.

There are minimums that the Coast Guard establishes and there may be additional minimums that a local authority, say New York State in your case may have on top of what the USCG says. For example, USCG does not 'require' you have an anchor on board, NY does however, and obviously its also a very good idea. There are often other requirements as well. For example, not only do you have to have a proper PFD for everyone on board, it must also be in serviceable condition and be readily available. Common sense really.

The link above is pretty comprehensive and could be used as a checklist of the bare minimum to meet requirements. There are other items that a prudent boater will carry. I would strongly suggest that you attend a safe boating course, offered by either the US Coast Guard Auxiliary or the United States Power Squadrons, to learn what constitutes safe boating and to correct some of the errors well intentioned folks may tell you on public forums. Things like a first aid kit, boat hook, VHF radio and compass are not 'required' by law on a 24' boat but most captains would not leave port without all of these items.

Once you have your boat and all of your gear I would further suggest that you request either organization above to perform a free vessel safety check. The safety check will have a qualified examiner come to your vessel and verify that you meet the minimum legal requirements and also go over with you any questions you may have. There is no citation, fine or any other type of punsihment if you fail, and if you pass the inspector will affix a USCG sticker to your windshield. Here is a link to the checklist an examiner will use http://forms.cgaux.org/archive/a7012.pdf

Pastaman1234, not trying to start a argument, but according to NYS there is nothing about an attached throw able device. Either the CS is wrong, or the Harbor has different rules. Be nice if everyone could get together on stuff like this.

Pastaman1234, not trying to start a argument, but according to NYS there is nothing about an attached throw able device. Either the CS is wrong, or the Harbor has different rules. Be nice if everyone could get together on stuff like this.

I guess the coastie could have been wrong but exactly what fischtion said is what happened to me but he also said i needed to tie a rope to it. I tied a 25' dock line to it right while he was still in the boat. No ticket and he was a nice guy!! I agree it would be nice if everyone was on the same page.

The throwable does NOT need to be attached to boat. In fact, it shouldn't be.

Regular inflatable PFD's no longer have to be worn to be counted; USCG changed that, and now they count just like a regular PFD (unless they are one of the jetski or skiing ones, in which case they do have to be worn to count.)

Individual states may have add'l requirements in some cases, especially regarding PFD's for various ages and activities.

I respectfully disagree with KPSavage's statement regarding the throwable attachment: " In fact, it shouldn't be."
Though attached line is not ....required.... for recreational boating, I believe it is for commercial fishing vessels of any size for good reason. It is generally tremendously easier,faster , safer to retrieve a PIW with an attached line and if the throw is bad the ring can be retrieved extremely quickly for redeployment, or in some cases, manuevered closer to the intended recipient.

In the case where the original PIW is unable to grasp the throwable, the attached line also provides a lifeline tether to the vessel if the "very last choice" situation necessitates someone on the boat to jump in to potentially save someone going down.

When you say "captain" - are you speaking about a professional running a 6 person (or less) charter operation? If so, the requirements are far greater than the USCG/NYS rules. They are the same as any other 6 person charter boat, and will include type I life jackets and depending upon where you go may include a commercial raft (if operating 12 or miles from shore).

I respectfully disagree with KPSavage's statement regarding the throwable attachment: " In fact, it shouldn't be."
Though attached line is not ....required.... for recreational boating, I believe it is for commercial fishing vessels of any size for good reason. (Etc.)

TTaxi

And I, in turn, agree with what you say. Just two things. First, I should have been more clear when I said "it shouldn't be." I think a length of line on the device is a good idea, and mine have such lines. But the "it shouldn't be" meant an attachment from the device to the boat (at least on the one it takes to make you legal. You should be able to have a second one, or more, attached or not as you like.) I put that there only since I have been told it is against CG regs to have any attachment between the device and the boat.

I'll dig in a little deeper and try to see if that's true. Thanks, KPS